Henry Hat-Trick Helps Barcelona Thrash Valencia

Josep Guardiola had to shuffle his side due to the injury to Andres Iniesta and the suspension of Samuel Eto'o, and he decided to hand Eidur Gudjohnsen a slot in midfield, while Aliaksandr Hleb filled the gap in attack.

Valencia, meanwhile, packed their midfield and left David Villa as the lone striker. Asier Del Horno came in at left-back, this giving him the opportunity to make up for an embarrassing night three seasons ago in the Champions League, when Lionel Messi ran the then Chelsea defender ragged.

First Half

Joan Laporta had barely reached his seat in the president's box, when Barca made a rampaging start to the match, only to be denied by the woodwork. Valencia gifted Xavi the ball outside the box, but, having done well to break free, the midfielder could only hit the far post with just Renan to beat.

As expected, Barcelona were dominating possession, and Valencia seemed more than content to play on the counter. Thierry Henry in particular was looking full of confidence, and it was the Frenchman who would break the deadlock on 20 minutes.

Yaya Toure picked the ball up in midfield, and with no apparent options, the Ivorian chipped an inch-perfect ball over the defence and into the path of Henry. There was still a lot of work to do, but Henry made it look easy, chipping the ball over Renan in almost arrogant fashion. 'Titi' has been far from his best at Barcelona, but this was vintage Henry.

The joy was almost short-lived, however, when Joaquin crossed for Villa immediately after the restart, but the Valencia hitman's header went uncharacteristically wide. It was all Barca though, as they began to exhibit some of the champagne football we have come to expect of them in recent weeks. Thierry Henry was at the centre of most of it, and his night got even better on 27 minutes.

It was a goal that embodied the brilliance of Barca. The move started in their own box, when Rafael Marquez played the ball out to Daniel Alves. The Brazilian played a one-two with Xavi, before releasing Hleb down the left. The Belorussian then found his ex-Arsenal team-mate with an excellent through ball, and Henry finished first time with consummate ease. As far as team goals go, this one was as good as it gets.

Barcelona continued to push forward, and Valencia looked in serious danger of being embarrassed. Daniel Alves and Lionel Messi in particular were combining in mesmerising fashion, and the Argentine should have scored after being released by the Brazilian, but Renan executed an excellent save with his outstretched right foot. Valencia were quite literally barely touching the ball.

With five minutes left, a rebound fell to Villa, but his run was soon stifled by four Barca defenders. It embodied Valencia's night; the ball only reached Villa due to a deflection, and when it did there was absolutely no one in support. Joaquin and Mata were, in effect, reduced to glorified wing-backs, as Barca continued to dominate.

Valencia went into the break lucky to be only two goals behind, and the only way Barca were not going to win this game was through  complacency.

Second Half

Pep Guardiola must have warned his team not to rest on their laurels at half-time, because it only took them 45 seconds to score again.  Xavi released Daniel Alves into the box, and the full-back finished expertly into the bottom right corner, escaping the attentions of Del Horno in the process. There was confusion earlier in the build-up, with many of the Valencia team standing still, expecting an offside against Hleb, but the decision never came, leaving Los Che to pay for not playing to the whistle. The referee's explanation appeared to be that Toure's pass to Hleb touched Joaquin on the way.

Just as after the first goal, David Villa was immediately presented with an excellent chance to score, but El Guaje tried to do too much, and his attempts to round Victor Valdes were foiled by the keeper, who until that point may as well have been watching from the stands, so minimal was his participation.

That chance was an aberration though, as Barcelona continued to press for more goals. On 55 minutes, Hleb somehow managed to mess up a three-on-one situation, when he hit his attempted through ball to Henry straight to Renan. On the hour, he had a chance to make amends when he was gifted the ball by Raul Albiol, but he could only shoot straight at Renan.

The game had lost its frantic pace, with Barca seemingly content just to keep the ball, while Valencia were devoid of any attacking ideas. On 66 minutes, however, some excellent dribbling from Messi brought him through on goal, but Renan dived at his feet and stole the ball at the last second. With twenty minutes left, the Camp Nou crowd rose as one as their favourite son Bojan came on to replace Hleb. It did not take long for the youngster to make his presence felt, as he set up Henry for his hat-trick.

After countless short passes among almost the entire Barca team, Bojan was released, and he used his impressive pace to get round his marker and to the by-line, from where he cut it back for Henry to tap into an empty net. It capped a memorable night for the Frenchman, who will surely find himself drifting more towards the centre in games to come.

That was the last major incident of the match, with both managers opting to use up all of their substitutions, giving players a run out and resting others for the vital games ahead.

Another impressive win for Barcelona, who are looking in ominous form ahead of the visit of Real Madrid next week. Valencia, meanwhile, are now eight points behind, and almost out of contention already.


Barcelona 4-0 Valencia
Henry 19, 27, 78
Daniel Alves 46
                   
Barcelona: Valdés - Daniel Alves, Puyol, Marquez, Abidal - Yaya Toure, Xavi (Keita 83), Gudjohnsen - Hleb (Bojan 70), Messi (Pedro 81), Henry

Valencia: Renan - Miguel, Albiol, Maduro, Del Horno - Manuel Fernandes, Albelda - Joaquin (Pablo 81), Baraja (Michel 70), Mata (Vicente 81) - Villa

Yellow Cards: Raul Albiol 5, Albelda 37, Villa 66, Miguel 71, Del Horno 72


 Arjun Miglani, Goal.com